


Through the Cold with Warm Hearts

by celeryy_ko



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: Fluff, M/M, a little ice skating
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-17
Updated: 2020-11-17
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:28:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,842
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27598244
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/celeryy_ko/pseuds/celeryy_ko
Summary: Station Square is holding a winter festival this year and Silver decides to tag along with Sonic and a few of his friends, since he's been looking forward to trying out ice skating for the first time.Upon the lights and crowds, Silver stops and stares as he discovers an unexpected face has also shown up to the celebration.
Relationships: Shadow the Hedgehog/Silver the Hedgehog
Comments: 6
Kudos: 40





	Through the Cold with Warm Hearts

**Author's Note:**

> hi, i'm back with another shadilver oneshot but this one's winter themed cuz it's my favourite season, and some of the inspiration for this fic came from a bgm of a game i used to play, so yeah. hope u enjoy <3

The sun began to set. 

The dusk soon took over the twilight.  
An amber glow was resting beneath an ever expansive shade of midnight-indigo above. It was the start of winter. The air felt crisp but no signs of freezing winds. 

Station Square was holding a winter festival this year. Flocks of people came to visit a park in the city that now resembled a winter wonderland. Glowing lights were wrapped around bare trees, colourful booths and festival games lined up next to each other, a few bunch of other attractions including a carousel, and a big skating rink in the middle of the festival grounds. 

The city illuminated with winter spirit. 

Somewhere walking amongst the bustling crowd was Sonic and his friends.  
Sonic walked alongside Tails and Knuckles while drinking a cup of hot chocolate and Tails with one as well. Knuckles decided to get a large drink of a chocolate caramel iced mocha with whip cream and peppermint drizzle, sprinkles, a straw, and a candy cane as a finishing touch.

“That’s a pretty crazy drink you got there, Knux.” Sonic said.

“Yeah, don’t you feel cold drinking that? I never really thought they’d still be selling those sorts of drinks this time of season.” Tails added while taking a sip of his hot chocolate.

Knuckles took a sip of his beverage. “Nope. Not at all. It tastes a lot better cold than warm, plus it looks way snazzier than two old boring cups of hot cocoa. It’s a 10 out of 10 for me.” Knuckles said with a nod and an approved look on his face. 

“Well, whatever you say buddy.” Sonic said with a chuckle.

Tails smiled.

Trailing behind the three friends was Silver. He smiled as he listened in on the conversation the three were having and imagined how warm they were in their winter coats. He was walking alongside Amy and Cream, who were also bundled up for the cold weather. The both of them ate warm crêpes while they chatted.

Silver was warm wearing his scarf, winter jacket, and his pair of knit mittens. The cold air hadn’t bothered him since his scarf had been wrapped around his muzzle comfortably.

While he paced beside the two friends he looked around and took in the wondrous spectacle the park was transformed into. He was enamored by the golden shine the trees were wrapped in, and the fun colours of festival signs and attractions, as well as the joy he felt from the people passing by. His eyes lit up. 

He wished it could be like this all year round.

“Don’t you just love winter? All the lights and decorations, and how beautiful the trees look with snow on their branches, it’s all so pretty...” Amy said as she held Cream’s hand.

“It’s a little cold, but yeah! I think it’s really pretty.” Cream agreed with a smile.

Amy turned to look at Silver.

“Silver? Are you sure you don’t want anything?”

“You can have a piece of my crêpe if you want, Mr. Silver.” Cream offered.

Silver snapped out of his dazzled stare and quickly turned his head around to look at the other two.

“Oh no, I’m fine! I don’t want anything, and thanks for the offer Cream.” He said as he shook his head and waved his hands in a polite gesture.

“Oh, alright then.” Amy smiled. 

Up ahead, Tails lifted his chin up as if he’d spotted something. His attention fell upon a crowd of people behind adorned maple trees skating around in both big and small gathers. He noticed he spotted the skating rink. 

As the group of friends got closer to the center of the park, Sonic nudged Knuckles with an elbow and the echidna gave him a slight look. 

“Hey Knux, betcha can’t beat me.” Sonic pointed towards rows of air hockey tables set up under a tent in the distance, and the hedgehog gave him a smug look.

Knuckles noticed what Sonic was pointing at. He narrowed his eyes and gave him a small smirk. “Alright then, you're on!”

As the hedgehog and echidna started to separate from the group, Sonic turned back to look at them. “We’ll be over there if you wanna join us!”

“You two better not go crazy and destroy anything!” Amy told him.

“Yeah, Amy, we won’t!” Sonic said

Tails noticed Sonic leaving. “I’ll join you two in a bit!” he waved an arm to notify the blue hedgehog.

As the remaining four watched the two race towards the tent, Tails turned his attention to Silver. “Hey Silver, I can see the skating rink over there. You said you wanted to try skating, right?”

Silver hadn’t noticed that they were already at the heart of the festival. He gazed towards the abundance of lights that lead its way along a small path to the rink, and an exciting rush soon overtook him.

“Oh, I see it.” A gleeful tone joined in with his words.

Tails was getting ready to fly off and join his two pals. “Alright then. See you three later!” Then took off. 

They all waved and watched Tails fly away.

A short silence was beginning to take over the three until Silver interrupted it. “Are you two gonna go skating as well?”

“Oh, I’d love to go, but Cream told me she wanted to visit the carousel and I can’t let her go alone or her mom will be furious if she gets lost, especially in this sort of weather.” Amy said while turning her head to look at Cream who was almost finished eating her crêpe.

“Oh..okay, then I guess I’ll be seeing you two later.” Silver’s gleeful tone now sounded a bit defeated. 

“Sorry, Silver, but maybe me, Cream, and the rest could join you later on, if only Cream wouldn’t end up being too busy with visiting all the attractions, that is.” She let out a friendly giggle.

Her laugh lit up Silver’s glum face a little.

“We’ll be off then.” Amy waved.

“Bye bye, Mr. Silver!” Cream shouted.

Silver smiled and waved as he watched the two disappear into the crowd.

“...” 

Silver was by himself now.

He let out a small sigh as he started his walk to the rink.

He was a bit saddened that everybody wanted to do something other than skating, but he was still looking forward to trying on some skates for the first time. 

As he walked, he looked up at the sky and noticed that it was already dark. He felt the air blowing against his quills was slightly colder than it was when he arrived. He slowly zipped up his jacket then fixed his scarf and put his mittened hands in his pockets. 

He felt warm.

He watched as many different people passed by him. 

Young and old, families, friends, couples, and even people who came there all alone. He couldn’t help but feel joy for how lively it was and how beautifully the city lit up at night. He gazed upon the towering structures over the park, how their blinking lights almost looked like stars in the night sky. 

His breath appeared as he exhaled.

He smiled.

He couldn’t help but wish it was like this for him, back in his reality.

After he walked the short distance, he finally arrived at the rink. There were more people there than he expected. He gaped in amazement as he looked around. The rink was huge! There was even enough empty space in between the clusters of people. Enough for him to practice without bumping into others. 

As Silver was nearing a flight of stairs leading down to the rink, he continued to examine the area. As he did, he suddenly stopped. 

He focused his gaze closer into the crowd and noticed a familiar figure.

Sitting on a bench, on the opposite side of the rink was an ivory bat. She wore a magenta designer trench coat and a matching beret. She had her legs crossed as she was going through something that appeared to be a watch of some sort.

Silver felt relieved knowing he wasn’t completely alone.

_“Rouge?”_ He thought _“I wonder what she’s doing here..”_

He took another quick moment to scan the crowds of people. He watched as all the skaters glided by one another in an array of diverse winter wear. His gaze then fell upon an empty area of the rink hidden behind a group of friends.

There, a lone figure was gracefully gliding across the ice in random circles, barely leaving their vacant corner.

Silver recognized that figure.

His heart began to race.

An ebony hedgehog who wore a slate-gray parka was alone in a distant corner, skating beneath a dim spotlight.

_“Shadow?”_

Silver hadn’t expected Shadow to show up, nor did he expect to watch him skate of all things. 

His mood began to lift up. 

With skating on his mind and a small sprint in his step, Silver quickly walked towards a hut to rent out a pair of skates, they were free just for the festival goers. He walked down the staircase and walked around the concrete area surrounding the rink, pretending not to notice Shadow. He found Rouge still looking through her wrist communicator and decided to walk over to say hello.

“Hey, Rouge.”

Rouge lifted up her head to see who it was.

“Well if it isn’t Silver. Hello there!”

Rouge got up from the bench and walked towards him. Her knee-high high heels clacked the ground with every step.

“I didn’t know you were gonna be here.” Silver said with a smile.

“Well, the commander’s given us a short break, so I figured I’d come down to the park and see what all the buzz was about. Might as well enjoy the freetime while it lasts, right?”

Rouge noticed Silver was holding a pair of ice skates at his side. “I see you’re going skating.”

“Yeah, and it’s my first time. Have you gone before?”

“I have, but I couldn’t keep my balance without having to use my wings for support. Let me tell you, it isn’t as easy as it looks, especially on your first try.” 

“Ah..I see.” He felt a bit nervous now.

Meanwhile on the ice, Shadow noticed Rouge was talking to someone. He skated closer to an edge and noticed she was chatting with Silver. He glanced at the ivory hedgehog as he slowed down. 

Silver felt someone staring at him then turned his head towards the rink and was met with Shadow’s gaze, and they made eye contact.

They both looked at each other for a moment, then Shadow pulled away from the gaze and went back to skimming the ice. 

A warm feeling brushed Silver’s cheeks.

Rouge looked at Silver’s face and followed his gaze. When she realized who he was staring at, she gave him a small smile. 

“Well Silver, I gotta go.” Rouge gave Silver a friendly pat on the shoulder.

He then returned his focus to the ivory bat. “Huh? W-wait, where are you going?”

“Amy messaged me not too long ago saying she wanted to invite me to the festival, but little does she know I’m already here!” Rouge said with a smirk. “She said she was with Cream at the carousel and was going to meet up with Sonic and the rest right after. I’m gonna go pay them a visit and say hi.”

“I was with Sonic and the rest not too long ago.” Silver said.

“That’s great! I’ll go tell them that we’ve met.”

Rouge looked back at the rink. “Hey Shadow!” She called out while waving an arm to catch his attention. “I’m gonna go meet up with Amy and the rest!

Shadow skidded to a halt and gave a slight wave.

“Have fun out there, Silver.” She was ready to take off. “Oh, and try to keep Shadow some company, okay?” She smiled then winked at him.

Silver’s face warmed up again after hearing that last part.

“U-um..yeah..”

“Catch ya later then, Silvy!” She flew off.

Silver looked over to the rink. It was finally time for him to try on his skates. 

He walked over to the edge and sat on the cold hard concrete as he changed from boots to skates. He then stood up on the ice and tried to keep his balance. To Silver’s surprise, standing wasn’t as hard as he thought it would be. 

He looked at all the other people on their skates and watched as some maneuvered around with ease and others tried their best to keep their own balance. He attempted to move his legs as he copied the stance and rhythm of the skaters gliding around in cursive strides. He went along slowly. Then gradually picked up his pace. 

He was a bit wobbly as he carefully watched where he was going on the ice. 

Then, suddenly..

“W-woahh!” 

Silver fell backwards onto his back.

“Oww..”

He tried to get up. 

_“Rouge was right, this is pretty hard..”_

Silver dusted the ice off his jacket. Despite the slight pain in his back he was determined to continue practicing.

He tried again, this time using his psychokinesis as a support. He slowly moved, then picked up the pace once again. He let himself free of his control and slid on, but this time he was going a bit too fast and lost grip of his posture. 

Just when he was about to fall again, he quickly used his psychokinesis to sustain himself.

And after that close call, he sighed.

On the other side, Shadow stopped and stared as Silver struggled with getting around. He felt a bit hesitant to go over, but then noticed the ivory trying to use his powers to balance instead of doing it naturally. He then thought that maybe he should try showing Silver the proper way to balance oneself with ice skates on.

Silver continued to helplessly use his psychokinesis while looking down to focus on his skates.

“Do you need help?”

The familiar voice caught Silver’s attention. He lifted up his head as he felt his heart pace faster. 

Standing in front of him was the same ebony hedgehog who’d been quietly skating in that empty corner of the rink, distant from the crowd.

The ivory hedgehog glanced at his face. It was a bit intimidating, but his expression gave off a softer tone than usual.

“Shadow..um, hi.” Silver looked at him with a smile trying to hide the slight nervousness that’d now started to take over him.

Shadow felt Silver’s uneasiness as he glanced at his smile.

“I saw you having trouble with keeping your balance from over there. Your psychokinesis isn’t going to be much help to you, especially if you're just beginning.” Shadow said as he turned his gaze to Silver’s skates.

“Yeah..I’m still pretty much a beginner..” Silver looked away in embarrassment knowing that Shadow had watched him fall on his back this whole time.

“..but..”

The ebony extended a hand towards him. 

“..I can show you how to skate, if you want.”

Silver paused and stared at Shadow’s hand. He then lifted his hand from his side and held on to Shadow’s. 

The ebony wrapped his hand around Silver’s. Then gave him his other hand to hold on to. 

As the two began to skate, Shadow brought his attention to Silver’s knit mittens. He felt their warmth against his cold hands as the both of them held on to each other. 

He then felt a pair of amber eyes staring at him. His ruby eyes met with them at a quick glance, then turned to look away, as Silver did the same. 

It was awkward, but Shadow felt as if he didn’t mind it at all.

After letting Silver get a feel of the ice, Shadow spoke up.

“Try bending your knees slightly.”

“Like this?” 

As Silver bent his knees, he started to move his legs.

“Now try leaning forward. If you lean back you’ll end up falling again.” Shadow told him as he slowly let go of Silver’s hands. 

He was slow as he moved himself, but he felt like he was getting the hang of it.

Then, a spark of confidence ran through Silver, and he sped up. Shadow was skating along backwards as he made sure Silver was keeping the right posture and balance. The ivory hedgehog went on as a rush of freedom slid alongside him and he started to pick up the rhythm that he saw in the other skaters. 

However, the flow Silver was soon getting used to came to an abrupt end when he suddenly felt himself wobbling back and forth and brought his weight towards his backside. Shadow quickly grabbed his arm that was reaching out to him and tried to pull Silver back up, but then Shadow felt himself losing his balance as he tried to use his free arm to keep himself stable. 

Then, a cyan glow started to appear around the two as they struggled to get a grasp on their center of gravity. 

“Sorry..” Silver said as his psychokinetic glow started to fade away.

“Just try getting a grip on skating slowly first before you pick up your speed.” Shadow said as his hand was still held onto Silver’s arm.

Silver knew that a ton of patience and practice had to be put into this sort of activity before he could actually let go and skate just like the way Shadow did. 

“Okay then..I’ll just go along slowly this time.” 

Silver held the ebony’s hands again, and the two began to start over.

The both of them spent an hour on the rink skating under bare lights from little spotlights overhead. Silver took the time to correct his balance and speed as the time passed by. The ivory once again lost his balance, but this time he actually fell down, with his weight bringing the ebony down with him. 

Silver suddenly let out a laugh as he tried to lift up his upper body from off the ice and saw that Shadow had fallen right beside him, on his stomach.

“Sorry. I guess we both fell down this time..” Silver said with a small chuckle. “It’s just..your face kind of looked funny when you were about to fall..” He added as he looked over to the ebony with a smile. 

Shadow used his hands and knees to lift himself off his stomach and brushed the ice off his sleeves. 

“It’s fine.” 

Shadow looked up towards Silver’s smile. He then felt an unusual warmth graze across his cold face as a small smile cracked upon a stoic expression he gave.

As the air began to start getting colder as the night went on, Silver looked around for a place to take a rest and found the benches near the rink’s edge.

“I’m feeling a bit tired..I’m gonna go take a break over there, you can come if you want?”

Shadow looked to where Silver was pointing towards and gave him a slight nod.

“I’ll join you then.” 

They both skated towards an edge and stepped on the concrete ground. Silver found his boots still sitting in the same spot he put them and decided to change back into them. Silver noticed that Shadow had also changed back into his rocket shoes.

Silver let out a sigh of exhaustion as he finally sat down. 

“Man, I’m worn out…” Silver said as he leaned back on the bench.

“Practice makes perfect..” Shadow said as he sat down beside him.

“You know, you never really struck me as the type who’d like skating..uh-well, I mean you do already skate, sort of..” The ivory hedgehog watched as less people were now on the ice.

“Perhaps I did get it from my running style. It made it easier to adapt to. After all, Rouge dragged me along with her, she also encouraged me to give it a try.” Shadow told him as he looked down at his clasped hands.

“I see..I think you're pretty good at it. I was watching you before coming down. You looked graceful...y-your skating I mean..” Silver stuttered out.

Shadow paused as he processed Silver’s compliment. He then turned his head slightly to face the ivory hedgehog.

“Thanks..”

It was mostly silent for a couple of seconds as the two watched a pair of skaters going over a skating routine, until Silver noticed Shadow was slowly rubbing his hands together.

“Um..are your hands cold?” Silver asked him.

“They're not, I’m fine.” Shadow had only worn his usual white gloves. 

“Are you sure? Because they felt pretty cold when we were skating, even with my mittens on.”

Silver pulled out his hands from under his pockets then took off his mittens. 

“Here..” The ivory hedgehog offered him.

Shadow stared at the knit mittens Silver had in his hands. He didn’t know what to say as the same unusual warmth from before lightly swept over his cheeks.

“My hands are already warm..so..” Silver said as he waited and hoped the ebony hedgehog would take his offer. 

As the air started to pinch his fingers, Shadow made up his mind and took the mittens from his hands and tried them on.

A smile appeared on Silver’s face as the other hedgehog put on the mittens.

“They’re warm right?”

Shadow slowly nodded his head as he stared at the soft fabrics that now covered his thinly layered gloves. 

“Um..Shadow..is your face also cold?” 

While the ebony stared at his warm hands resting on his lap, a pink hue had mixed in with his tan complexion as he felt his face warm up against the cold winter air. 

“N-no, I’m not cold, It’s fine.”

The slight stutter from Shadow surprised the ivory a bit and he wondered why it was mixed in with his words.

“O-oh, alright then.”

The night went on and new crowds of people had made their way onto the rink. The two hedgehogs continued with their little conversations as they sat on the bench surrounded by trees of decorative lights and ornaments. 

Silver didn’t feel that loneliness clouding in him from before while he talked with Shadow. Even when he noticed Shadow was a bit introverted when they talked, Silver still felt interested in getting to know the ebony more. Ever since meeting him, he admired a certain thing in Shadow that failed to exist in the apocalyptic dystopia he called home. But sometimes, something else would fall upon the ivory hedgehog whenever he caught sight of Shadow; something of a warm feeling he’d never felt before.

As a short silence fell upon them after a small conversation they had, Silver noticed a tunnel of lights behind a few unlit trees in the distance and was curious as to what it was. He stood up from the bench and wondered if Shadow wanted to go check it out.

“Um..do you want to go for a walk?”

Shadow looked up at him and paused for a few seconds. 

“Sure.”

They made their way towards the rental hut to return their skates then headed up the staircase.

The two paced beside each other and took in the marvelous light display around them. They were walking towards a different part of the festival and Silver’s eyes widened as the both of them were nearing a crowd surrounding a small stage with performers acting out something. Silver recognized they were reenacting the play version of “The Little Match Girl”. 

As Silver walked along watching the performance, a light snowflake fell on his nose. 

Shadow felt a snowflake land on his forehead as he looked up to the night sky and saw plenty of them floating around in midair like tiny angels making their descent down to Earth.

“It’s snowing..” Shadow said as he focused his gaze up above.

“Yeah..it’s pretty..” Silver looked up in awe.

Shadow returned his gaze back down. “I’m guessing you don’t have much snow where you're from.” He said as he looked over to the performance playing out on the nearby stage.

“No..even with most of the flames put out, the smoke blocking the clouds doesn't help much with the changes in weather. But when I’m here..sometimes I wish I didn’t have to go back..” Silver said as he watched the snow fall.

Shadow looked over to the ivory hedgehog who then brought his gaze back down to the ebony hedgehog and a light blush appeared on both their faces as they took a quick glance at each other.

“Um. I think the snow looks beautiful as well. I’ve been on Earth for quite a while now, but every time it snows I find it fascinating, as well as other things about this planet. Although, certain things on Earth confuse me sometimes.” Shadow said as the two were nearing the lit up garden tunnel Silver was curious about.

Silver smiled knowing Shadow still found things interesting about this world they lived on. It also made Silver feel less alone knowing he wasn’t the only one who felt lost at times when it came to some things on this planet and the present world.

With every step they took, Silver was speechless as he entered the garden tunnel. He didn’t realize how much all these brilliant lights dressed around the festival would leave him wonderstruck as he looked around wide-eyed. He wasn’t the only one who felt that way. Shadow had also found the tunnel they made their way into stunning as he turned his head to observe all the lights hanging from the arched wires.

“Wooow...this is probably gonna be my favourite part of the entire festival..” Silver looked around stunned.

“Are you sure?” Shadow looked at him

“Well, I mean, the entire park looks great, but this is like icing on a cake. It’s beautiful..”

Shadow returned his gaze to the bright lights. 

While traversing under arch ways of illumination, a thought popped up in Shadow’s head and he remembered something. He raised up a hand from his side and looked over to Silver.

“I forgot to give these back.” Shadow said as he took off the mittens he borrowed.

“Oh, thanks, I hope they kept you warm.” Silver smiled. 

“They have.”

As he handed over the pair of mittens back to Silver, Shadow’s communicator started to beep, and he checked it.

“Rouge messaged me wondering where we are. She says she’s with the rest waiting near the entrance.”

“We should probably head back then..” Silver said feeling a bit disappointed that they had to go back.

As they approached the exit, an awkward silence lurked it’s way upon the two. Silver didn’t know what to talk about and neither did Shadow, but then, as the lights surrounding them began to twinkle, an idea crossed Silver’s mind, though he wasn’t so sure if he should even try to attempt it, but somewhere deep in his heart he wanted to. He knew he felt a certain liking towards Shadow and wanted to know if he felt the same. He wanted to try taking a risk that fell out of his comfort zone for once and didn’t want to leave the festival knowing if he’ll even see Shadow again since he’s always busy on missions. So, he did it..

“Hey..um..here..” Silver had one of his mittens in his hand. 

Shadow looked at Silver then stared at what was in his hand in confusion. “Don’t you need it?”

“I-I want you to wear it..”

Shadow was silent and a bit puzzled as he put on the mitten. Then, Silver extended his hand that’d been covered by his other mitten towards Shadow’s and stuffed his other one into his pocket. 

Shadow stared at the ivory’s extended hand for a few seconds and noticed it was shaking a little. 

The confusion the ebony faced soon turned around into a small surprise as a blush creeped upon his face when he realized what Silver was doing. 

There was silence standing between the two, until Shadow slowly moved his hand and laid it on top of the nervous Silver’s and then gently wrapped it around his.

“T-that way we can both stay warm.” Silver said nervously but with slight happiness. 

Shadow felt the familiar comfort while holding the other’s hand and went back to the time they were skating together. They took a quick second to take in what was happening and then faced each other. Nothing but soft blushes were on the two.

As they exited the glistening tunnel and back into the crisp air of winter; hands wrapped together, it was only silence once again but this time neither of them minded it. 

As the two walked, Silver took a slight peek at Shadow from the corner of his eye and noticed him staring at the ground with a tender smile on his face. 

Silver then smiled to himself.

**Author's Note:**

> thank u for reading!


End file.
